South Gloucestershire is in a “better position than most” councils despite facing a gaping £29 million gap in its budget next year. Council chiefs warned that some services could face cuts, but added the “situation could be much worse” given the current turbulent economy.
Next year South Gloucestershire Council needs to find £29.3 million to balance the books, due to double-digit inflation and increasing demand on local public services. Finance bosses have now begun drawing up next year’s budget, with more details to come later this autumn.
The budget will likely be signed off in February, a few weeks before the financial year begins in April. The council’s cabinet heard details of the draft budget for next year, at a meeting on Monday, October 10.
Read more: Inflation and demand for social care leaves Bristol City Council needing £31m
Cllr Sam Bromiley, cabinet member for children and young people, said: “It’s clear that there’s no easy solutions to the challenges we face in setting a budget for next year. From having spoken to other councillors at recent Local Government Association events, it’s obvious that these are being felt by local authorities across the country.
“I think the takeaway message from a lot of these conversations is that this situation could be much worse, and we could be facing a much higher deficit. Thankfully this isn’t the case, and owing to the council’s robust financial management, we’re in a better position than most.”
More details about how each service could be affected should be published in December. The council will then consult the public service changes and next year’s budget, formally setting the spending plans in February.
But next year’s budget doesn’t begin until the start of the financial year in April, still a few months away. This means it’s difficult to accurately forecast how much money the council will need to spend and how much income it will receive, and depends on several changing factors like inflation and potential council tax increases.
Nina Philippidis, head of finance, said: “It’ll be necessary to review the council’s overall financial position further, in light of a number of areas, notably: the government’s response to the cost of living crisis, the local government pay offer, further increases in inflation, setting council tax, the local government financial settlement, and wider changes in the economy.
“While additional funding is anticipated, there’s no certainty around this, and the council is planning service level options to ensure it can balance the budget. These options are being developed over the autumn.”
Councillor Ben Burton, cabinet member for corporate resources, added: “These pressures have been driven by the war in Ukraine, rising interest rates, the local government pay offer, and increased demand for our services as we face the cost of living crisis. We’ll use the consultation to gather views of our staff, residents and businesses before any final decisions are taken by the full council in February.”
Read next:
